Bane of Dreams
by Separate Entity
Summary: Adne remembers Ren. *Spoilers for BLOODROSE*


**A/N: So, I finished _Bloodrose_ a few days ago, and I noticed that there is an _extreme_ lack of fics in this fandom. *hint hint* This is one of several unrelated one-shots I have written/will be writing and publishing in the next few weeks.**  
><strong>Just for clarification, italicized words that aren't part of a quote are Adne's thoughts.<strong>

.o.O.o.

At first, the dream was great. Wonderful, even.

They're standing on the volcano, choking on fumes, and Connor is writing in a notebook.

When he explains that it's for Silas, Adne can't help herself. She leans in and kisses Connor softly on the lips. "You're a good man after all," Adne says, thinking back, to when she had never doubted him. She turns to walk toward the volcano, where Pyralis awaits.

Connor catches her around the waist and, before Adne can react, he's lifting her up kissing her. It's anything but soft. Adne finds herself kissing him back with equal force. _Why now?_ she wonders. _What changed?_ She wants to ask him, but that would require pulling away.

Adne loses herself in Connor's embrace. She feels like she's flying, or falling, riding the world's most amazing roller coaster.

Conner sets Adne down, much too soon. She feels dizzy, exhilarated. "I give up," Connor says. "I love you, Adne. I am goddamned crazy in love with you."

She reaches out and grips his hand, needing to touch him, to show him how much his words meant to her. "Just don't die in there. Okay?" Adne asks, only half joking. "We have lots to talk about after all this is over." _And maybe a bit more than_ talking, she thinks before she can help it.

"I'll do my best," Connor promises.

Adne throws herself at him—literally—and kisses him again, fiercely. Her fingers dig into the hair at the base of his neck, and his arms are wrapped around her, holding her flush against him.

This time, they are pulled away from each other by, well, a wolf whistle. Only then does Adne realize that they have an audience.

She blushes as red as the volcano. Calla's blushing too, and Shay looks uncomfortable. Mason, the wolf whistler, is clapping, a crazy grin on his face. Adne's gaze falls on her brother, and is surprised to see that Ren is glaring at Connor. Connor notices Ren's glare. "What?" he asks.

"That's my sister," Ren says. Despite his tone, Adne feels a shiver go through her at Ren's words. _His sister,_ she thinks. _I have a brother. I'm_ not _alone._

"I know. And I love her," Connor replies. His words have an even greater effect on her than Ren's had.

"Great. But what are your intentions?"  
><em>Intentions?<em> Adne wonders, _Are we in the Middle Ages or something?_ "My intentions?" Connor echoes her thoughts.

"When all this is over you and I have a lot to talk about too," Ren says, as if that explains everything.

Then the scene shifts, taking a turn for the worse.

Ren, in wolf form, is lying limply on the floor, his gray pelt marred with bloody gashes. "Why?" Adne says. "Why did you have to go too?" She feels her brother's loss all over again.

A shimmer appears over Ren's corpse. It takes on color and substance, and the form of ... a human boy. "Ren!" Adne cries. She runs at him. A second before she reaches him, she realizes that she might go right through him. She extends a cautious hand, relieved when it lands on a warm, solid arm. And then she's in his arms, and he's holding her close. She hears a hitching sound, and realizes that she's crying. Looking up, she sees that Ren's eyes are moist, too. She wraps her arms tightly around his torso, burying her head in his chest. "Why did you have to go too?" she asks again.

Ren lets out a long breath. "I'm sorry, sis," he says, "I'm so sorry."

"I miss you," Adne says, her voice thin. "I barely even got to know you!"

"I'm so sorry," he repeats. "Look, I … I don't know how much time I have. Is Connor treating you well?"

"He takes care of me."

"Good," Ren says, nodding. "I never got to thr—I mean, talk to him. I never had any siblings before, but I know I'm supposed to tell any romantic interest of my younger sister that I will cause them bodily harm if they hurt you."

Adne can't help but chuckle, even if he is threatening Connor. "I can pass the message along, if you like," she says, and Ren nods. "What happens now?" Adne asks, "Are you, like, Fallen? Or are you just going to be dream-stalking me?"

Ren sobers. "I'm sort of in an in-between place, now. I can hear whispers. Corrine is there, on the other side of the mist. Man, that sounded like a B-movie." His voice drops slightly. "Mon—our father wanted me to tell you that he's so proud of you, and that he loves you."

Adne feels fresh tears stinging her eyes. "Can you tell him that I love him, too?"

Ren answers in the affirmative. "Listen, Adne, I should probably go now, b—"

"No!" Adne protests, beginning to cry in earnest. "Can't you stay just a bit longer?"

He wipes the moisture off her face with a gentle hand. "If you'll let me _finish_," Ren says, a twinkle in his eye, "I was _going_ to say that I'll be back. Maybe not for a few more nights, but I will be back." He hugs her again, and kisses her forehead, then begins to shimmer and fade. "Sweet dreams, little sis," he says, and then he's gone, leaving Adne in the room with a dead wolf and the smell of sandalwood and leather.

Adne opens her eyes. She's back at the Academy, alone in her bed. Her chest feels heavy, as though her spinning emotions have weight. She gets up and wanders down the halls of the Haldis wing, pausing before a door and debating. Finally, she turns the knob and walks in quietly. Connor lies curled up in his bed, snoring. The sound is soothing, not too loud. Adne approaches the bed and slips under the comforter beside Connor, careful not to rouse him. She must not have been careful enough, because Connor stops snoring and rolls over. Something sharp is pressed under her jaw.

"_Adne?_" he asks, his voice incredulous. "What in the world?" He reaches over and turns on a bedside lamp, squinting as his eyes adjust.

"I didn't know you slept with a dagger," Adne says, trying to make a joke and failing miserably.

"But—what are you _doing_ here?" he asks, fumbling the dagger away.

"I didn't want to be alone," Adne confesses, ducking her head.

"Is everything alright?" he asks.

"I'll tell you in the morning," she promises, "but for now, can you just … hold me?"

Without another word, Connor wraps an arm around Adne, tucking her in to his side. Then he reaches over and turns off the lamp, plunging the room once more into darkness.

"I love you," she whispers into his arm.

"Love you more," he says, and she senses rather than sees him smile.

Wrapped in Connor's arms, she feels warm and protected. She'll see Ren later.

**A/N: Not quite sure how I feel about this one. Tell me what you think!**  
><strong> Coming soon: a CallaRen bit, based on the song Raised by Wolves by Falling In Reverse, set between _Wolfsbane_ and _Bloodrose_; POSSIBLY a scene that is my interpretation of when Mason and Nev first met/started dating; and Ethan's point of view on drinking Sabine's blood in _Wolfsbane_.**


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